Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Cultural Heritage: Nagorno Karabakh

Baroness Cox: Her Majesty's Government what action they are taking to support UNESCO's proposal of a mission to take stock of the situation regarding cultural properties in and around Nagorno-Karabakh.

Baroness Barran: As signatories to the Hague Convention of 1954 for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, the UK supports the work of UNESCO in working with the relevant authorities in Armenia and Azerbaijan to protect cultural properties at risk in Nagorno-Karabakh. We support the work of the Minsk Group and hope UNESCO- appointed inspectors will be given unfettered access to ensure the effective safeguarding of the region’s heritage. The Minister for European Neighbourhood and the Americas at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has emphasised the importance of protecting all cultural heritage sites to both the Armenian and Azerbaijani Governments.

Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage

Lord Foster of Bath: Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to ratify the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Baroness Barran: The Government values the profound contribution of the UK’s craft workers, artisans and artists to the preservation of our unique intangible heritage. We are exploring the merits of ratifying the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, as a potential addition to the broad range of support measures which already exist for this vital aspect of our nation’s life.

Department for Transport

Driving: Speed Limits

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government how they intend to reduce the numbers of speeding drivers following the data published by the Department for Transport that showed that 56 per cent of drivers broke the 30mph speed limit between January and March 2021.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: The Government believes that any form of dangerous or inconsiderate driving behaviour is a serious road safety issue. All available research shows a link between excessive speed and the risk of collisions. We expect all drivers to observe the speed limit, and enforcement is a matter for the police. Policing of our roads, and how available resources are deployed, is the responsibility of individual chief officers, taking into account the specific local issues. Last autumn, the Department for Transport launched a Call for Evidence, as part of a wider Roads Policing Review, a thorough examination of roads policing of roads policing in England and Wales and its relevance to road safety. Responses to the Call for Evidence will inform the action plan that is being developed by the roads policing review governance board. This is jointly chaired by officials from the Home Office and the Department for Transport. The Call for Evidence closed in October 2020 and we are planning to publish our response this summer.

Cycling: Accidents

Lord Mawson: Her Majesty's Government what research they have commissioned in the last three years on the causes of road traffic accidents between motor vehicles and cyclists in cities.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: In 2019 the Department commissioned NatCen social research to conduct a rapid evidence review to understand the factors behind collisions in cyclists resulting from ‘failing to look properly’ and ‘look but failed to see’, and to assess possible interventions to minimise these types of collisions. This work was commissioned in response to Action 41 in the Government response to the 2018 Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy (CWIS) Safety Review call for evidence. This committed the Department to “commission a package of research to look into technical, physiological and behavioural issues relating to the visibility and audibility of cyclists. The research is complete and we expect to publish the report later this summer. In 2018 the Government announced a £480,000 partnership between the police, the RAC Foundation and Highways England to trial a new approach to investigating all road collisions (The Road Collision Investigation Project – RCIP). This involves more in-depth, qualitative analysis to understand the underlying causes of crashes and road safety incidents. The latest update on this project can be found on the RAC Foundation website, under “collaborations”.